Busy (lazy?) student seeks aide

Georgetown University sophomore Charley Cooper is busy. He has a full load of classes, hours of homework and a part-time job at a financial services company. He's also worried about an illness in the family. And then there are all the other time-consuming aspects of college.

The solution? A personal assistant.

Cooper, 19, logged on to the university's student employment Web site recently and posted an ad for someone to tackle "some of my everyday tasks," such as organizing his closet, dropping him off and picking him up from work, scheduling haircuts, putting gas in the car and taking it in for service, managing his electronic accounts and doing laundry.

The successful applicant can expect to work three to seven hours a week and make $10 to $12 an hour, although "on occasion it will be possible to work additional hours and/or receive bonuses at my discretion." Preference will be given to Georgetown undergraduates, Cooper says in the listing, and the assistant can spread his or her tasks throughout the day.

Could this be a publicity stunt? Cooper said in a Facebook message to a reporter that he is serious and has heard from several interested students, in addition to a few prank applicants. A university spokesman confirmed that Cooper is a student and has posted the job listing.

Cooper would answer questions only through messages sent to his Facebook account, which features a photo of a man in a striped polo shirt holding a champagne glass. He provided only brief details about himself, his family and his job: He grew up in Bethesda, Md., and graduated from the Landon School, a private boys' school, in 2008. He lives in the dorms and hasn't declared a major but is planning to double-major in finance and management. His LinkedIn profile says he is considering jobs in finance, entertainment or both.

Cooper said he decided to post the help-wanted ad after a family member had a cancer diagnosis and began to make arrangements for treatment at Georgetown University Hospital. He hopes to start interviews after the craziness of midterms has passed.

"I know that if I didn't already have a job, I would definitely be interested in a job that pays 10 to 12 dollars per hour and is flexible in terms of hours," he said.

The student newsmagazine Georgetown Voice posted the listing on its blog under the headline, "Georgetown sophomore seeks personal assistant, takes premature self-importance to whole new level." Soon, dozens of derogatory comments popped up accusing Cooper of furthering the stereotype that Georgetown is filled with wealthy kids who can't do anything for themselves.

Although the posting created buzz, outsourcing dull duties is not a new thing at Georgetown or other universities. Some students pay to have their group houses or apartments cleaned, or contract with Soapy Joe's, a company that will pick up dirty laundry from the dorms and return it clean and folded within days.